The ''Ökumenische Heiligenlexikon'' (ÖHL) or ''Ecumenical Lexicon of Saints'' is an independent,

ecumenical Ecumenism ( ; alternatively spelled oecumenism)also called interdenominationalism, or ecumenicalismis the concept and principle that Christians who belong to different Christian denominations should work together to develop closer relationships ...

, private internet project by Protestant pastor Joachim Schäfer, from

Stuttgart Stuttgart (; ; Swabian German, Swabian: ; Alemannic German, Alemannic: ; Italian language, Italian: ; ) is the capital city, capital and List of cities in Baden-Württemberg by population, largest city of the States of Germany, German state of ...

, which aims to publish information on the lives of

saint In Christianity, Christian belief, a saint is a person who is recognized as having an exceptional degree of sanctification in Christianity, holiness, imitation of God, likeness, or closeness to God in Christianity, God. However, the use of the ...

s.Joachim Schäfer
''Ökumenisches Heiligenlexikon''
Retrieved 21 Aug 2016.

Lexicon

The lexicon is the largest and most comprehensive online repository of information on saints and other people considered blessed or holy.Peter J. Bräunlein
''Web-Review of Das ökumenische Heiligenlexikon.''
In: '' H-Soz-u-Kult'', 28 August 2004. The basis of the collection are sources that are generally accessible, especially reprinted church history works.

Criticism

Numerous articles in the lexicon have bee proven to be unreliable and too uncritical. The volunteer editors ignore well-researched articles on the lives of medieval saints, backed up with sources and references. Reviewers concluded that due to a lack of contextualization and depth of research, the Heiligenlexikon is not to be used as a tool for religious or church history.

References

External links

* Joachim Schäfer
Ökumenisches Heiligenlexikon
* Carola Nathan: ''http://www.monumente-online.de/13/06/service/surftipps.php Ökumenisches Heiligenlexikon '', Review at ''Monumente online'',

Deutsche Stiftung Denkmalschutz The ''Deutsche Stiftung Denkmalschutz'' ("German Foundation for Monument Protection") is a German private initiative founded in 1985 that works for the preservation of cultural heritage in Germany and to promote the idea of cultural heritage ma ...

, December 2013.
The Heiligenlexikon on SWR1 Radio

Christian encyclopedias Heiligenlexikon Religious biographical dictionaries German online encyclopedias 21st-century encyclopedias {{saint-stub